Business
Jamaica aiming to become global logistics port hub and transform economy
The plans have excited many in this country of 2.7 million people known mostly for its beaches, dominant Olympic sprinters and reggae music. Industry Minister Anthony Hylton said it is such a high stakes competition that he is “up at nights, frequently in the wee hours of the morning, cognizant of the fact that the future of our economy depends on us getting this initiative right.”
Yet it is far from clear whether Jamaica can realize its ambitious goals, despite its strategic location by busy sea lanes between North, Central and South American markets. Jamaica has had one of the world’s slowest growing economies over the past four few years.
These economic woes severely limit Jamaica’s ability to invest in the project, which is estimated to cost as much as US$15 billion. That means the private sector would need to provide almost all of the financing.
Damien King, head of the economics department at Jamaica’s campus of the University of the West Indies, said the plans are worth pursuing but transforming Jamaica into a logistics center would require a huge level of public sector organization and management.
“It is far from obvious that the Jamaican government can muster that even with throwing a disproportionate share of its capacity at the problem,” King said.
At the same time, a skirmish has been brewing between the government and the conservation lobby over the proposed port to be developed by the China Harbor Engineering Company on the uninhabited Goat Islands in a swath of Portland Bight, the island-nation’s biggest protected area. Environmentalists argue the port would have a devastating impact on a coastal zone that was shielded in 1999 to safeguard reefs, mangroves and fish nurseries.
Diana McCaulay of the watchdog group Jamaica Environment Trust has called for more public consultation about the China-financed port but requests for more information have been denied. Without knowing specifics of the deal, she said it’s impossible to assess the benefits.
